i realize even as i began to eat light and go on a healthy eating regimen, i really don't hv to give up desserts totally. i just need to be selective thats all. like the ones i made lately, be it the ichigo daifuku (strawberry mochi), japanese souffle cheesecake or spiced poached pears, they definitely satisfied the sweet tooth in me without adding a whole lot of calories. this rose chiffon cake is no exception. this cake is light and airy and lends a subtle hint of rose, which is my favorite flavor in desserts and remains soft even after refrigeration due to the fact it uses oil instead of butter.

like muffins, i've never really taken an interest in scones, until i tried them that is. the first time i had them was at chihuly lounge, ritz carlton. it was ok, kinda dry and cold but passable. 2nd time was when i told myself i really had to make them at home! that was at TWG. the scone was warm, buttery and crisp on the outside. totally very lovely and it was a pity they only served one on our 3-tier celebration set.

ever since my first not-so-fantastic attempt on laksa pesto, i've been wanting to make it again. chubby hubby was really kind to gimme some pointers via twitter but unfortunately i've forgotten most of it except that he used sambal for his. but all's not lost coz i found another delicious recipe.

lately i've been seeing lotsa honey belle pears at the supermarket and for sometime i actually mistook them for forelle pears coz both varieties hv got this blush of red. these are sweet & crunchy and while i totally appreciate the sweetness, i just don't like them crunchy. i really like my pears soft so i decided to poach them. it took me sometime to find the right recipe coz lotsa poached pears recipes use either red wine or dessert wine, something which i do not feel like splurging on at the moment.

to be frank, making tea ice cream isn't something on my to-do list despite the fact that i love this combination alot. my favorite tea ice cream of all time must be canele patisserie's earl grey ice cream (packs a punch!) as well as island creamery's teh tarik ice cream. the reason is coz i think it takes alot of tea leaves to really bring out the flavor and aroma especially when ingredients like cream and milk are usually very overpowering. i made chocolate macarons with earl grey dark choc ganache before so i know. but there's so much tea leaves waiting to be used up and i don't normally like making tea on its own, i figured out it'll be faster to use them in baking/desserts.

just the other day, the gf and i made a trip to jewels at orchard central to try their macarons. technically speaking i wouldn't call this a patisserie but rather, a chocolaterie since they only serve very few things like chocolate cakes, bonbons & chocolate beverages and macarons. nothing caught our eye on the menu so we just had macarons. we ordered all 5 flavors available. from top to bottom : the black palm island salt, green tea, butterfly pea bloom, passionfruit & raspberry.